Come take a look at our Top 5 Relics of the Hive Mind – It’s Tyranid Bio-Artefact time!

When I hear the word “Artefacts” I think of Indiana Jones. Maybe it’s just me, but it always conjures of an image of something old an ancient. Dusty tombs, cobwebs, skeletons…that type of thing. However, for the Tryanids, Bio-Artefacts has an entirely different meaning. They are a completely alien threat that comes from beyond the galatic rim. They have made their way across an untold amount of space and time to come to our galaxy and devour all bio-mass. Or to put it another way: “NOM NOM NOM NOM!”

That said, we’ve been play around with the new codex all week on our Twitch Streamand I’ve personally been experimenting with lots of different load-outs and army builds. I’ve been really enjoying messing around and have settled on a few of the Bio-Artefacts that I’ve been gravitating towards (depending on the build).

Chameleonic Mutation

This one is Kraken only. However, it’s a straight-up -1 to all hit rolls for ranged weapons that target this model. Now, I want folks to read this one again – It just has to be a Kraken Model. I slapped this on a Kraken Tervigon and parked it next to a squad of 3 Venomthropes which have this rule now:

So sure, you can target the big monster units, you’ll just give your opponent a -2 to hit them…Sounds good to me!

The Ymgarl Factor

It’s BACK! Unfortunately, it’s only available on ONE model. On the plus side it’s a bonus to one random stat. We like randomness, right? …Okay, it would have been nice to be able to choose one but it’s also Hive Fleet Agnostic – so if you don’t know what to take, go with the “Y” Factor!

Scythes of Tyran

This one is for all you Behemoth fans out there – These Scythes are pretty solid! First off, it’s +1 Strength which should bring most monsters up to 7. It’s still AP -3 and 3 damage, like regular monstrous scything talons. But now for each hit roll of 6+, you get an additional hit roll. That’s a nice bonus. But really I’ve found success with my Flyrants who have these equipped vs vehicles. Going from str 6 to 7 means you’re wounding most light tanks on 4s instead of 5s.

Balethorn Cannon

The Balethorn Cannon is Kronos only and replaces a stranglethorn cannon. Now, the stranglethorn cannon hasn’t REALLY been that popular of an option for a few editions. But the most likely candidates for packing this will be a Kronos Hive Tyrant or a Carnifex. Both of which can potentially have a BS 3. Now, couple that with a D6 Assault range 36″ weapon and that means you can move and fire with accuracy – especially at big squads. However, if you’re already in position (and you’re Kronos…which you have to be) you could theoretically hit a 10+ squad on 2s, re-rolling 1s to hit. Oh and it’s Str 7, AP -1, 2 Damage each. Works GREAT on Primaris Marines…

The Maw-Claws of Thyrax

Are you running a Broodlord, have a spare relic slot and have no idea what to take? Then let me introduce you to The Maw-Claws of Thyrax! The Broodlord comes standard with monstrous rending claws already and when he kills an enemy model, you’ll get re-roll failed hit rolls in the Fight phase for the rest of the game! But there are lots of other creatures with Rending Claws littered throughout the codex you could apply these to because they can be “worn” by any Hive Fleet.

That’s it for our list of favorite Tyranid Relics – are there any Bio-Artefacts that you’re really curious/interested in? Let us know in the comments below!